This sassy little guy has changed my life in more ways than I ever thought possible. I knew I always wanted a dog, but I couldn’t have anticipated how much joy and happiness this small bundle of fluff could bring me. Remember when you were a kid and you asked your parents for a dog and their famous excuse was always, “a dog is a lot of responsibility…”? Well, they were right. But also wrong at the same time. While dogs are undoubtedly a lot of responsibility, this isn’t a good enough excuse for why a child should not be allowed to have a dog or any pet for that matter. In addition to providing emotional and social support, these furry companions also give us someone to care for, which teaches us how to be responsible and love unconditionally. Continue reading “How Dog Ownership has Changed me”→

Part II: The Seizure Scare

It was a hot summer day, much like every other day in July and my sister had taken Timmy for a walk to the park. He loves to run around like a crazy animal, sniff and occasionally eat the grass and chase around a squirrel or two. They came home after about an hour. Timmy had his tongue hanging out of his mouth. He was panting and thirsty. He took a few big gulps of water and plopped onto his cushion for an afternoon nap. A couple of hours later he woke up. He tried to stand up, but to our complete horror, he couldn’t support his weight. He was lethargic and weak, and his legs kept collapsing. We gently pressed on his legs to make sure nothing was broken, but at this point, we knew that something was VERY wrong. The first thing that came to mind was that he was having a seizure. Continue reading “Lessons from a Dog Owner (2)”→